We spend many hours glancing at celebrities like Jennifer Lopez and Salma Hayek on the red carpet. The same question is often asked: How do they get their skin so flawless? These events require a lot of preparation by an army, with personal trainers, hairstylists, and makeup artists. Ivan Pol, also known as The Beauty Sandwich, brings celebrity faces to life.
His client list includes Salma Hayek and Jennifer Lopez, Anya TaylorJoy, Phoebe Dynevor (Penelope Cruz), Penelope Cruz, and Penelope Cruz: Emma Stone, Tessa Thompson, and even Kris Jenner. Radiofrequency technology is non-invasive and non-toxic. It works on different layers of skin to tone, plump, and enhance the glow.
He tells me that people often ask him what his ‘beauty sandwich is.’ It’s about creating a sharp, defined jawline, elevated, sculpted cheekbone, and snatched eyebrow. This was before the “glazed donut” trend. He was introduced to Jennifer Lopez by Oribe Canales, a late hairstylist.
“I told her, ‘Wait a minute, I’ve been doing makeup for a while, and your skin is the most beautiful I’ve ever seen – what’s the best thing you can do?'” Pol returned to school to get his license and started working with the chief dermatologist at Mount Sinai Hospital in Miami Beach.
“I was surprised when I started because there weren’t effective non-invasive treatments. Everything was a laser or a needle, and 15 years back, these treatments were very aggressive.” Many of his clients were concerned about injectables and wanted a treatment to soften their fine lines and wrinkles. Eventually, he combined his interest and knowledge of the skin’s mechanics (acquired during his dermatology) with scientifically-proven radiofrequency technology.
He explains, “I started from one foundational device inside my sandwich.” Monopolar radiofrequency is the technology; you use these tiny wands that heat up. They could contour and highlight the face, allowing me to get under the jawline to carve some cheekbones and lift the eyebrows. It was as simple as using makeup brushes. This was his first layer of the now-famous “sandwich.”
Other forms of radiofrequency technology are used in the different layers. They are suitable for all skin types and help to synthesize and plump the muscles. This means the skin becomes firmer and more sculpted immediately, while collagen is stimulated over time. The effects are so lasting that actresses can have treatment days before a red-carpet event and still reap the benefits on photo shoots weeks later. He says, “If a client visits me three times, they’ll enjoy results for almost one year.”
He also “HT0_ carb loads”, which means he doubles down when he treats – another clever play on the sandwich metaphor – with many of his actresses, Hayek included. Hayek, 56, looks radiant and has a beautiful contour. He says, “I combine three to four radiofrequency layers on back-to-back days. While most of my sandwiches get about 15 minutes for each radiofrequency layer, carb loading means I get 30 to 40 minutes each. This is more intense.” It’s the most delicious sandwich with a significant impact.
He says, “What’s amazing about it is that I can get snatched faces in 30 to 45 minutes.” It isn’t painful, either. “The first layer of the treatment is a soothing warm sensation. The second layer is cold and pushes and penetrates the warm layers even further. Then I use a pulsed infrared beam to tone your muscles. The filler will sit better if your facial contours are more defined.
It’s an easy way to get a natural inner lift. Celebrities flock to him before events. It’s an easy way to look and feel better. “My clients tell me it makes them feel more confident – our ethos focuses on elevating who they are, rather than augmenting,” says Pol. “You aren’t messing with your natural beauty. There is no downtime, redness, or pain. All you need is cheekbones, which could have been carved from the gods.
